The worlds of comic books, animation and entertainment have lost a true giant this week: Dwayne McDuffie. He was the brilliant writer, producer and entrepreneur who brought diversity and humanity to comic books and animation through the creation of the Milestone Universe which provided multicultural characters and contributions to Justice League, Teen Titans and Ben 10. Dwayne also served as a mentor to legions of writers, artists and creators. He had turned 49 a day before his death this past Monday, Feb. 21, of complications from heart surgery.
To me, he was a brilliant creator, champion of diversity, a loyal business partner and, most importantly, a long-time friend. Twenty years ago, Dwayne and I made history when we, along with Denys Cowan and Michael Davis, co-created Milestone Media, Inc., which would become the nation’s largest Black-owned comic book company. He passed away almost 18 years to the date when we launched our line of comics: February 23, 1993.
At that moment in history, Dwayne served as Milestone’s Editor-in-Chief and from his mind sprung some amazing characters: Hardware, a corporate professional who used his intellect to fight crime; Blood Syndicate, a super-powered multicultural assortment of renegades who learned to work together for their own survival; Icon, a conservative hero with a brash female sidekick, Rocket; and one of his most popular creations, Static, a wise-cracking teenager who would learn responsibility through the acquisition of electromagnetic powers. Dwayne provided hours of entertainment for children and parents alike when he developed Static Shock, the Warner Bros. animated series based on the Milestone character that lasted four seasons.
Just days prior to his death, I spoke with a group of kids and parents at the Westchester, New York chapter of Jack & Jill, the 63-year old family organization that provides social, cultural and educational opportunities, about the birth and mission of Milestone Media, which was to add ethnic, racial and gender diversity and dignity to superhero comic books, as well as build a company that would welcome the contributions of writers, artists, inkers, painters and interns of all hues. Milestone was the shared vision that we would provide the world with images that had been excluded from the mainstream for decades. Dwayne was the key to making that dream a reality to our company and comic book fans, as well as those who sought tales of adventure. He was an integral part in negotiating the groundbreaking publishing, marketing and licensing agreement that the Milestone partners structured with DC Comics (a division of Time Warner)–one of the most innovative distribution deals in the comic book industry at the time. In fact, Dwayne’s contributions to business diversity were so significant that it earned him a place on the November 1994 issue of BLACK ENTERPRISE Magazine with Denys and myself.
Dwayne realized the importance of creating such images because they represented heroes and opportunities. He also saw comic books and animation as a way of dealing with such issues as racism, sexism, gang violence, gun control and conflict resolution without sacrificing entertainment value. In fact, Dwayne was the 2003 recipient of a Humanitas Award (with Warner Bros. Animation’s Alan Burnett
) for “Jimmy,†a Static Shock episode about gun violence in schools.When we started Milestone, Dwayne would often share his reason with our staff and the press for pushing for such diversity and the importance of creating a line of comics that would break stereotypes and not treat any race as being monolithic.
- “If you do a Black character or a female character or an Asian character then they just aren’t that character. They represent that race, or that sex, and they can’t be interesting because everything they do has to represent an entire block of people. Superman isn’t all White people and neither is Lex Luthor. We knew we had to present a range of characters within each ethnic group, which means that we couldn’t do just one book. We had to do a series of books and we had to present a view of the world that’s wider than the world we’ve seen before.â€
Let me share a bit of Dwayne’s history and why he was so exceptional and versatile.  He was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. I always said that he was a genius simply because he fit the bill.  He attended Michigan’s The Roeper School for gifted children and later the University of Michigan studying physics, graduating with an undergraduate degree in English and a graduate degree in physics. He also attended film school at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Dwayne also wrote for stand-up comedian and late-night television comedy programs, including handling scribe duties for David Letterman
.After a stint as a copy editor for a financial magazine, he entered the comic book industry by gaining a position as an assistant editor for Marvel Comics, where he conceived and launched the company’s first line of superhero trading cards. His first major work was the development of Damage Control, about a company that cleaned up after the battles of superheroes and super villains. Always advocating the creation of more African Americans on the pages and behind the scenes of comics, he submitted a parody comic proposal, Teenage Negro Ninja Thrasher, in response to Marvel’s treatment of Black characters. As a freelancer, he wrote for such titles as Captain Marvel, The Avengers, The Amazing Spider-Man, Deathlok and a special that featured the pop star Prince. Dwayne was the type of writer who always would seek to advance the reader’s knowledge by dropping in lines from a Zora Neale Hurston novel or using W.E.B. DuBois’ The Souls of Black Folk and Booker T. Washington‘s  Up From Slavery as giveaways to readers.
While Dwayne was at Milestone, he oversaw the production of more than 300 issues between 1993-1998, years in which the titles were published, and is responsible for the revival of Milestone through the Static Shock animated series and reprints and new series from DC Comics. He developed new fans through television, writing Static Shock, Teen Titans, What’s New Scooby-Doo?, Justice League and cartoon Network’s Ben 10 franchise.
I was fortunate that I got a chance to see and talk with Dwayne and his dear wife, Charlotte, last week. I attended the premiere of All-Star Superman,
the Warner Bros. animated feature that he served as screenwriter and was released on Feb. 22. As usual, it was another example of Dwayne’s brilliance in adapting the Superman mythology with depth, dignity, humor and humanity. The last time I talked with him was the night I returned from my three-hour session with the group from Jack & Jill. I was compelled to tell him how excited those kids and parents were about his role in creating characters that they could identify with. I shared the 400-plus page bible he created of heroes, villains and a multicultural world unlike anything seen in comic books 20 years ago and since. I told him there was a hunger for what he had to offer young children of color, as well as older generations. His last words to me were: “Maybe we should make some more characters that they can connect with.â€It warms my heart that comic fan sites and mainstream publications have noted the significance of Dwayne’s work and life. I am glad I got a chance to share with him what he meant to the world and that he was able to give me another glimpse into his creative vision. He provided generations with rich experiences, the chance to dream of heroes and possibilities. I–and multitudes of fans–will deeply miss him. He was our hero who shared endless possibilities.